jczar03 said:

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After starting this thread early this year, my daughter seems to finally be doing really well! She is currently substitute teaching until she finds a permanent position, hopefully in second grade which seems to be the grade she enjoys the most. With normal weight of about 120 lbs. and after being as low as 88 lbs., she is currently around 130 lbs. She is constantly interacting with family and friends again like she used to. She seems to finally be on the right combination of medications.

It was a really tough 3-year battle for her, but she seems to be on the right path now. She is dealing well with all the day-to-day challenges and stresses. For example, her psychiatrist who she really connected with and liked unexpectedly passed away in September.

I think the ultimate key here was the genetics testing which showed she had been prescribed all the wrong medications. I pray this update gives those reading this thread some hope!

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Max Power said:

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Just wanted to check in with the holidays coming up on us soon and see how everyone is doing.

I've been struggling recently to be honest. The combination of work being crazy, the upcoming holidays, and family stuff has been tough.

Though I joined a men's soccer league I basically had to give it up because it was destroying my knees. The constant starting and stopping did not cooperate. Also the schedule was tough because the games were pretty late at night. I had been searching for something to take the place and was having difficulty because of my late work hours made it impossible to do just about anything health/exercise in a group. I had basically hit a wall and it was impacting other things in my life, I didn't know what else to do.

The one thing I could find nearby that I could make for a work schedule that concluded at 7:00 pm was jiu jitsu. I have no experience in the slightest in anything combat wise, zero. I just decided that desperate times call for desperate measures and I went to my first class last night. I was terrible at it, of course, which I expected but the staff and members were all friendly. It was a rough workout, but it allowed me to completely empty my mind for an hour. It might have been exactly what I needed. The person I was partnered with was much bigger and more experienced than me but he was also a good partner to have. It was nice to be out of the house and I didn't even know if I could make myself walk into the building in all honesty. This is as far outside of my comfort zone as I could get, but I went. I couldn't look myself in the mirror if I didn't at least try. It's been a while since I was proud of myself for trying something regardless of outcome. I decided to sign up, I might only be able to train twice a week right now, but I'm at the very least going to see how it goes and if I want to continue.

It's just good to reinforce that I know I have to be an active participant in order to change my mental perspective. Sometimes when you feel at your lowest the worst part is not knowing where to start. I guess fighting literally might help the fight metaphorically.

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Adverse Event said:

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What steps are you taking or will you take to improve your condition?

Do you have (or need) anyone to talk to about your predicament, professional or otherwise?

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The 1-1-1 Method

Every single evening, at the end of your work day, open up your journal and write down three simple points:

• 1 win from the day
• 1 point of tension, anxiety, or stress
• 1 point of gratitude

It takes about 5 minutes.

— Sahil Bloom (@SahilBloom) January 2, 2023

One way to help the 1-1-1 Method stick:

Create a group chat with a few others who want to make journaling a habit in 2023.

The group chat is only used for sending a ☑️ once you complete it in the evening.

Keep each other accountable and build the streak.

— Sahil Bloom (@SahilBloom) January 2, 2023

Admiral Adama said:

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This is probably the zeal of the converted. I've always been active and I committed last year to getting in the best shape of my life to meet some running goals. Part of that lead me to doing hot yoga 3-4x per week as a way to work on flexibility and support muscles so that I could be a better runner. A funny thing happened while doing yoga. The intensity of the exercise, combined with a focus on breath work and coming back to your "why" when things in class are really difficult has put me in a place where I am honestly the calmest and least emotionally reactive to stress that I have ever been in my entire life. Exercise has always been a tool to relieve stress for me, but this is the first time it's been a tool to take control rather than to manage its symptoms.

All that to say, I think, eastern philosophy that connects breath to movement when doing difficult things is some thing that us Westerners should pay close attention to as a very useful tool to manage life. I like yoga for that, but I know that a lot of sports like BJJ do the same thing and I highly recommend finding breath/movement sport that works for y'all.

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